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Diversity is about patterns, not just names
The first part of Bio 116 works best when you treat classification as evidence about shared ancestry, reproduction, and structural innovation.
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01:119:116 · Biological Sciences · School 01 — New Brunswick School of Arts and Sciences
General Biology II is the second half of Rutgers' major-level introductory sequence. Official Rutgers materials describe it as a survey of biological diversity and organismal systems that moves from phylogeny and life cycles into endocrine, nervous, digestive, circulatory, immune, and infectious-disease topics, again supported by weekly workshops.
How hard?
Students rate teaching
SIRS · 5,635 responses · 2016–2025
Spring 2027
55 open in snapshot · 2 instructors
When it meets
Busch, C/D
Checked-in sections · current seat counts are unavailable.
TF 8:30 AM · C/D · 32 sections · 32 open
MW 5:40 PM · Busch · 23 sections · 23 open
AI-generated overview
Higher means more demanding · AI summary
5 units · topic sequence may vary by instructor
The first exam block is heavily about classification and evolutionary organization. The syllabus starts with virology, prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and fungi before expanding into broader phylogenetic reasoning, so students spend a lot of early energy learning how lineages and replication strategies are compared.
After microbes and fungi, the course surveys major animal clades, vertebrate evolution, and plant lineages. Rutgers' outline treats life cycles, body plans, and transport systems as part of one diversity story rather than splitting taxonomy and physiology into totally separate conversations.
The middle of the semester pivots from diversity to organismal regulation. Endocrine signaling, male and female reproduction, fertilization, cleavage, gastrulation, and development are taught as connected process units that ask students to trace pathways and diagnose what changes when one step fails.
Bio 116 then spends significant time on nervous-system organization, membrane potentials, action potentials, synapses, sensory processing, and muscle contraction. This part rewards students who can draw flows and signal sequences instead of only memorizing labeled parts.
The closing weeks cover how organisms acquire nutrients, exchange gases, circulate materials, regulate waste, and defend against pathogens. The official syllabus ends with adaptive immunity and infectious disease, making the course finish on a strong applied-physiology and health-science note.
Public r/rutgers discussion describes Bio 116 as the point where some students feel the sequence becomes more anatomy-and-physiology heavy, while others think it is easier once they understand Rutgers' organizer style. The most consistent warning is that the first half's phylogenies and life cycles need active practice, not passive review.
The first part of Bio 116 works best when you treat classification as evidence about shared ancestry, reproduction, and structural innovation.
Plant, fungal, and animal life cycles are not trivia charts; they are compact explanations of when ploidy changes, when reproduction occurs, and how lineages persist.
Endocrine, nervous, digestive, and immune topics all rely on the same habit of following signals, feedback, and downstream consequences.
Many later units are really variations on a single question: how organisms keep internal conditions workable while responding to external change.
Common pitfall
Instead
Practice generating the diagrams yourself so you can explain why each branch or stage belongs where it does.
Common pitfall
Instead
Trace the direction of signals, substances, or pressure changes from start to finish for each system.
Common pitfall
Instead
Keep earlier diversity and signaling ideas in circulation because later exams still reward cross-topic connections.
55 open · Busch, C/D
| Section | Status | Instructor | Meeting | Campus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B213576 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 3:50 PM-5:10 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| B313577 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Thursday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| B413578 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Thursday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| B513579 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| B613580 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Tuesday 8:30 AM-9:50 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| B813581 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Thursday 2:00 PM-3:20 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C113582 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Tuesday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C213583 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Tuesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C313584 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 10:20 AM-11:40 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C413585 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 2:00 PM-3:20 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C613586 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 7:30 PM-8:50 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| C913587 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Monday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Wednesday 5:40 PM-7:00 PM at ARC 103; Thursday 8:30 AM-9:50 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| D113588 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Tuesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Friday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Monday 8:30 AM-9:50 AM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| D313589 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Tuesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Friday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Monday 7:30 PM-8:50 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| D413590 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Tuesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Friday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Tuesday 3:50 PM-5:10 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
| D613591 | Open | Amber Sarwani | Tuesday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Friday 12:10 PM-1:30 PM at ARC 103; Monday 2:00 PM-3:20 PM at ARC 309ARC 103ARC 309 | Busch |
Historical student surveys
Teaching
4.55
Course quality
4.19
Response rate
39.9%
Coverage
66 offerings · 2016–2025
| Instructor | Offerings | Teaching | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Keating | 17 | 4.46 | 4.12 |
| Christy Beal | 14 | 4.62 | 4.32 |
| Daniel Stern Cardinale | 11 | 4.75 | 4.40 |
| Stern Cardinale Daniel | 4 | 4.57 | 4.00 |
| Beal Christy | 4 | 4.40 | 4.00 |
| Cavera V. | 3 | 4.73 | 4.40 |
Catalog and planning context
Credits
4
Current campuses
Busch, C/D
Current availability
55 open of 55
Catalog terms
Fall, Spring, Summer
Core codes
NS
Loaded terms
4
(01:119:115)
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